Craftaganza Live Talk - MIY Workshop

I'm Meme Dendy, little (sometimes annoying) sister of Karli. Karli has introduced me into the world of social media and now she's getting me into the world of blogging. So you lucky people get to read my first ever ever blog post EVER! 

Flyer from last nights talk (we didn't take any photos!

Last night I was thrown into the world of craft which my sister has become so accustom to. She very kindly took me along to a Craftaganza Live talk. I got to meet some of the people who I've seen so much about on social media and I got to put a face to the craft. 

Wendy Ward was the speaker and she did a talk telling us all about how she got started and how she has ended up running her own business MIY Workshop. 

The talk was very friendly and informal, and not too long! It was also positive, making the process of going from crafter to business owner sound challenging but not unachievable. Wendy detailed the journey she has been through to get to the point she is now, talking about the low points and tough decisions along the way. 

I think the talk was particularly interesting if you shared Wendy's passion for her craft as she is clearly very talented at what she does, not only teaching but also designing and creating her own patterns. However I think the message and ethos she talked of is beneficial to any one trying to make the leap from doing something as a hobby to doing it as a real grown-up job and all that that entails. 

Photo from Wendy's website of Patten Cutting

It was a great experience and excellent for those of us who are a bit nosy (myself included)! It was interesting to hear about someone's craft, experiences and journey. It was a lovely, informal night out, nothing like the dreadful talks you used to get in school, also I'm pretty sure you were never allowed an Amaretto and coke during a talk at school.  

If I lived in Brighton I'd definitely be up for going  to the next one as it was mentioned the next talker could be someone who makes big things out of little things, which left me confused but interested! I'm sure Karli will update us all of what that talk entails. 

Amelia

(designosaur model/ Karli's Sister)

It's My Birthday!

So, TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY!

I have had an awesome amazing incredibly fun filled weekend, which if you follow us on twitter, instagram or facebook (or all three) then you will have seen all the fun I had! (I may do a blog post of all the fun I had, if you think this is a good idea then right in the comments box, if you ignore my question then I might do it anyway...)

Now that is all out of the way, I got a pretty cool present for my birthday by a pretty awesome jewellery designer.

The designer in question is ROCKCAKES aka Sarah Meredith, who is a Brighton based lovely who just happens to be married to LOMOKEV, if any of you know how cool that is...

HOWEVER, even without being married to lomokev this wonderlady makes FANTASTIC jewellery, and I got a piece for my birthday!

I was so overwhelmed with how beautifully it was wrapped that I didn't open it straight away because I wanted the light to be nice so I could photograph the packaging. (that's how good it was!)

So here it is, packaging and all.

"The ring is angled in a way that the wearer can view the silver screen, a perfect silent cus if you are sitting in a boring meeting" 

Gorgeous little hand drawn TV

Apparently this is how Sarah wraps all of her orders!

Not too much raving Karli!

LOVE IT!

So much detail even a tiny little plug!

I also have a Rockcakes silver bracelet with a diamond pendant on it which is TOTALLY AWESOME too! Jacques bought that for me at our second Craftaganza and I never take it off. 

I have a few items on my wish list including the "Every Cloud" (has a silver lining) Bracelet! Check out her website, so you can fall in love with her jewellery too and follow her on twitter to find out when you can find her at a craft fair next!

ROAR!

Karli

the BEST craft fairs around...

This is based  entirely on our opinions only. As craft fair season starts up again we thought we'd give our opinion on the BEST craft fairs there are.

So what does BEST mean to us - it is a mixture of atmosphere, footfall, standard of other sellers, promotion and how well we do at the craft fair!

We did a lot of craft fairs last year and here is the pick of the best ones!

Brighton Craftaganza

Our first ever craft fair. EVER. 

The deets:

When? Several each year, Normally around Easter, June and Christmas.

Who? Organised by the wonderful Zoe, who does a sterling job of standing outside the venue ALL DAY, in all weathers. It really is ALL DAY, I think sometimes she even misses lunch - Zoe is Hardcore for the cause.

The Wonderful Zoe, Inside?!

Where? It is normally held at Fabrica which is in the centre of Brighton, on the outside of the South Lanes with a huge footfall of tourists as well as shoppers. 

The lowdown:

In total I think we did three Craftaganza's, and they just got better and better. The first one we did was our FIRST EVER CRAFT FAIR EVER EVER, and it couldn't have gone better. Looking at photos from that first fair makes us realise that we really didn't have very much stock at all! We did however do well despite this and got lots of positive feedback.

Zoe is the most organised person in the world. She manages to organise a craft fair, promote it and jazz up the venue effotlessly. (This is just the impression she gives, I am not saying that organising a craft fair is easy at all.)  What also helps is Zoe is super friendly :) YAY!

Renegade London

The deets:

Where? In the Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, London - Prime Location!

When? Once a year in London, but they travel the USA and hold fairs in Brooklyn, LA, Austin, Chicago and San Francisco.

Who? There are a team of people that come from America to set up the fair and it is very well organised, there is even an "Info Booth" for enquires for sellers as well as buyers (that's how big it is!).

The lowdown:

We hadn't heard of Renegade before but from sufficient stalking it seemed that people we knew were attending and it was the place to be. Unfourtuantly we applied late so weren't included on the printed literature and were in an area that was slightly away from the rest of the sellers. (I'd say it was the late corner) I don't actually think that it hindered us in any way, being placed where we were placed and the section you get given is HUUUUGGGE.

We did really well at this fair, but having to travel to London does have added costs. If we decide to do it again we will hopefully share with another brand to cut the cost of the stall. You still get a more than ample amount of space. The event is two days, but Jacques is from South East London, so we were able to stay with his parents.

  

 

This was a lot of fun watching Jacques trying to put up our sign. He thought he was Indiana Jones.

Renegade is playing with the big boys, so you really do have to have confidence in your product, as well as really put an effort into your stand.

We met Sally from Hand Over Your Fairy Cakes, and got drunk with Hello DODO for the first time. Since then it has happened more frequently... they are a bad influence on us.

It was great to see sellers from all over the country and even all over the world!

Crafty Fox Market

The Door Step of the Dog Star

The deets:

Where? The Dogstar, Brixton (Hipster Central)

When? A couple a year, Easter and Christmas I think, maybe more.

Who? Sinead and Stephan, Brixton locals and lovely people!

The lowdown:

Another London craft fair whose reputation had preceded them. We strolled up on the Sunday, walked down a long road off the high street to the Dog Star (I wasn't sure what the footfall would be like at this point!) and set up on our super tiny pub table. It  was Christmas but we were amazed at how many people came through the doors! Etsy goodie bags were given to early arrivers, which meant that people were streaming through the doors from opening. 

There was a DJ - ( a good one) which set an awesome vibe, we could have a pint and it was all very relaxed. It was also CRAZY BUSY. We did really well, the size of our table made no difference to our sales as customers spent an equal amount of time at each stall, investigating the whole building (there were three floors to explore including a Tea Room and workshops).

Overall we had an awesome time and we have applied to go back this Easter! (fingers crossed)

[The fair was also linked with moo.com which meant that we got 100 free business cards to give out. BONUS!]

So that's that, our favourite craft fairs from last year! 

Please tell me your favourite Craft Fair. We would love to do some fairs in the North but just don't know any! The only one we have heard of Reet Sweet, which is meant to be good but we would love to know more details on this if any of you have done it!

There is also BUST in Bethnal Green which we would like to try from good reviews last year.

As usual this is a very rambly post. I hope it is helpful to some of you. 

ROAR!

Karli